My First Business Trip (!!)
I'm going to keep this one a bit short because not only am I on a business trip, but I'm typing this on my iPad. Not easy. Also pretty poor planning on my part.
So yeah, I'm in Watford right now, which is just outside of London, and is also where TJX Europe's head office is located. After a bit of back and forth about the logistics of this trip, I am FINALLY here! And wow am I learning a lot. TJX Europe (or TJXE in TJX speak) (we have about a billion acronyms) is a subdivision of TJX as a whole, but acts quite independently from the rest of the company, and has most of it's operations headed up here in Watford. The Düsseldorf office that I work in is a satellite office that has mostly buying, but also some support functions like logistics, HR, and finance.
As I'm sure many Northeastern students (and BSIB specifically) can relate to, I had to explain the idea of co-op about a million times today to everyone I spoke to. Aside from that though, I got to speak to people who worked in all the different distribution functions (distribution takes up a whole floor here!!!) (it's just like 8ish people in Germany) and was really able to put together a lot of the pieces of how product is allocated and planned throughout our supply chain. As a supply chain concentration, I was able to see some of the concepts I've been learning in class be put into use in real life, and I learned a bunch of real life principles that I can hopefully take back to my classes in the fall (I'm taking transportation in the fall, so I feel like I'll have a lot to contribute lol).
Aside from the learning of aspect of it all, it's really amazing to be able to travel back to the London area, and for it all to be arranged through work too 🙌🏻 I was, of course, pretty nervous setting out on my own, even though I am a pretty seasoned traveler at this point, just because I wasn't super confident in all of the logistics of the trip. Like, who would I eat lunch with? Where do I sit during the day? How do I know where to go for the trillion meetings I have? Luckily though, my Buyer Vendir Support counterparts that work in the U.K. have been incredible in making me feel welcome and making sure I am taken care of at all times.
As per usual, my worrying was for nothing. I feel like my time abroad has really been helping to teach me to go with the flow and trust that everything is going to work out. Normally I like to have a set plan, and know what I'm doing every minute of the day, but in being abroad and dealing with different cultures, new experiences and differing personalities, sometimes that's just not possible. And that's okay!!!!! Which is what I tell myself every time I find myself stressing out. As great as it is to plan, sometimes it's really not necessary.
Like I said, this is going to e a short and sweet post about my past couple of days, and some thoughts rattling around in my brain. Tomorrow I'm off to visit our freight forwarder in London (and maybe do a bit of sightseeing??) and then on Friday afternoon I'm flying out to Valencia to visit my family who is currently visiting my cousin as he's doing a summer study abroad. My travels continue!
So yeah, I'm in Watford right now, which is just outside of London, and is also where TJX Europe's head office is located. After a bit of back and forth about the logistics of this trip, I am FINALLY here! And wow am I learning a lot. TJX Europe (or TJXE in TJX speak) (we have about a billion acronyms) is a subdivision of TJX as a whole, but acts quite independently from the rest of the company, and has most of it's operations headed up here in Watford. The Düsseldorf office that I work in is a satellite office that has mostly buying, but also some support functions like logistics, HR, and finance.
As I'm sure many Northeastern students (and BSIB specifically) can relate to, I had to explain the idea of co-op about a million times today to everyone I spoke to. Aside from that though, I got to speak to people who worked in all the different distribution functions (distribution takes up a whole floor here!!!) (it's just like 8ish people in Germany) and was really able to put together a lot of the pieces of how product is allocated and planned throughout our supply chain. As a supply chain concentration, I was able to see some of the concepts I've been learning in class be put into use in real life, and I learned a bunch of real life principles that I can hopefully take back to my classes in the fall (I'm taking transportation in the fall, so I feel like I'll have a lot to contribute lol).
Aside from the learning of aspect of it all, it's really amazing to be able to travel back to the London area, and for it all to be arranged through work too 🙌🏻 I was, of course, pretty nervous setting out on my own, even though I am a pretty seasoned traveler at this point, just because I wasn't super confident in all of the logistics of the trip. Like, who would I eat lunch with? Where do I sit during the day? How do I know where to go for the trillion meetings I have? Luckily though, my Buyer Vendir Support counterparts that work in the U.K. have been incredible in making me feel welcome and making sure I am taken care of at all times.
As per usual, my worrying was for nothing. I feel like my time abroad has really been helping to teach me to go with the flow and trust that everything is going to work out. Normally I like to have a set plan, and know what I'm doing every minute of the day, but in being abroad and dealing with different cultures, new experiences and differing personalities, sometimes that's just not possible. And that's okay!!!!! Which is what I tell myself every time I find myself stressing out. As great as it is to plan, sometimes it's really not necessary.
Like I said, this is going to e a short and sweet post about my past couple of days, and some thoughts rattling around in my brain. Tomorrow I'm off to visit our freight forwarder in London (and maybe do a bit of sightseeing??) and then on Friday afternoon I'm flying out to Valencia to visit my family who is currently visiting my cousin as he's doing a summer study abroad. My travels continue!
Comments
Post a Comment